


Hiraeth

by nouvellelune



Category: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Genre: F/M, Link (Legend of Zelda) Needs a Hug, Link/Zelda (Legend of Zelda) Fluff, Post-Calamity Ganon, Post-Canon, zelink
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-24
Updated: 2020-09-10
Packaged: 2021-03-06 21:21:22
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,302
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26075575
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nouvellelune/pseuds/nouvellelune
Relationships: Link & Zelda (Legend of Zelda), Link/Zelda (Legend of Zelda)
Comments: 10
Kudos: 51





	1. I

The Link that left the shrine of resurrection was not the same one that entered. Zelda concluded this when she came too in his bed in Hateno, feeling the rough quilt drag over her as he readjusted it for her. She didn’t move, keeping her eyes closed and her ears alert to whatever movement was happening where she couldn’t see. She heard the slight creaking of wooden boards under his feet, a brief sigh with that gentle voice of his, and a brief rustle (hair, she identified) as he dragged a hand to ease the tension in his scalp. The reason why she was so determined to appear asleep escaped her. An instinct, perhaps? But what did she have to fear with Link? 

She thankfully didn’t have to deliberate on it for long, as she quickly tuned in to the creaking floorboards again. They trailed a few steps away and down an even creakier flight of stairs, before coming to rest on the floor beneath where she was lying. She dared to scoot her body closer to the edge of the mattress to get a better listen downstairs, keeping her eyes closed. She clenched her jaw with annoyance, irritated that there wasn’t an ear equivalent to squinting one's eyes. Even with all of her strain, she could only make out single, stray clinks of flatware from below. Or weapons, a panicked part of her thought. She pushed the thought away immediately. Link was a knight, and it was perfectly logical for him to keep swords in his house. She had seen the number of equipment he had collected on his journey through her small, hazy glimpse of the land. Each one ended up shattered under the sheer force of his swings or stored in the cozy house that she currently laid in. 

Cozy, she thought dreamily, drowsiness starting to creep on her again. The glimpses she had of Link were fleeting, each showing a different part of his journey. A trek up a rainy mountain, dueling in the moonlight with stalmoblins, peaceful mornings in a small yellow cottage. This yellow cottage. She stretched her arms out to soak in every sunbeam that came through the window she couldn’t see.

You’re here, she thought, This isn't a vision. You’re here, in his house, in his bed. You can see it for yourself.

Her eyes drifted open, unflinching at the morning light that came through the small square window ahead of her. She raised a gentle hand and dragged her fingers across the sunbeams as if they were harp strings. As if she could play the very sun.

She was here. She was safe. Ganon is dead. Link is alive. She cycled the thoughts in her head as she brought her hand safely under the warm covers again, pressed against her heart. She dozed off again not long after, right as Link began brewing tea right below her. 

It had been two nights since the fight with Calamity Ganon. Two nights without sleep. Two nights well spent. At least, he thought so when he wasn’t stumbling over his own thoughts in an attempt to think coherently. The tea helped with staying awake. It was standing long enough for the tea to brew that was the problem. 

“Hylia above…” He muttered, rubbing the lights out of his eyes and suppressing a yawn, “One hundred years wasn’t enough.”

He gripped the counter and clenched his eyes shut to prevent any drooping, and retraced his thoughts. It usually helped in staying awake, especially during long nights on the Divine Beasts. It seemed that he was particularly tuckered out tonight because his thoughts trailed all the way back to that day in the field. That long, long day, two nights ago.

“Do you really remember me?” 

He had to sit down as her voice reentered his thoughts. In the memories, her voice had been as mellifluous as he had imagined before. He had no idea it would be even more so in real life. 

“I never forgot,” He had said that day in Hyrule Field. He saw her face dip into a sad smile, and his heart sank with it. She thought he was lying, but what he said was true. Tracking down the memories hadn’t felt like a chore, it felt like a necessity. And when he found the locations, he wasn’t having an old tape replayed for him. He was being reminded. His old life felt like a dream that one is reminded of years after the fact, and every time he saw the princess again, a familiar swell filled his chest. All the love he had felt for Zelda dripped back into him like a rusted faucet with each memory, the rust slowly dissolving with her every word. 

“I understand, Link,” She had said, her hands still clasped together at her chest, “You have every right to detest me for robbing you of something so intimate as memories. Just know that I wouldn’t have done it if I thought Hyrule didn’t stand a cha-”

He didn’t know what he was doing until he had dropped the bow of light at his feet. Zelda’s mossy eyes opened wide as he closed the distance between them and pulled her into a tight embrace, the feel of her skin as smooth and refreshing as spring water.

“I missed you so much…’ He had muttered into her ear, barely obscured by the waves of her flaxen hair, “More than memories, more than all that missed time…”

At first, he had feared she would panic and push him away. He didn’t imagine that one hundred years trapped with Calamity Ganon would make a person eager to get trapped in a hug. His heart leaped as she felt her hands wrap around and meet at the base of his back, her head leaning into the crook of his shoulder. She leaned more, and more, until…

“Woah, princess,” Link was almost late in catching her as her legs briefly gave out, catching his elbows under her arms and slowly lowering the both of them to the grass, “Are you alright?”

“Yes, yes, I’m fine,” She had said, both of them now kneeled on the ground. She still wobbled on her knees, though Link was trying as gently as he could to keep her steady, “I just feel a little faint, that’s all…”

“You’re exhausted,” Link had said, “There’s a stable not far from here. Do you think you can make the journey?”

“I’ll be fine,” She had said and stood as the dizzy spell passed. Link stood, albeit cautiously, and reluctantly released her hands as she got upright on her own. He quickly felt heat rise to his cheeks. He hadn’t realized that they had taken each other's hands while kneeled. The princess didn’t seem as phased however, turning to gaze at the ruined Hyrule Castle in the distance. He thought she was about to collapse again when he realized she was standing completely still. The movement had simply been her white gown in the gentle breeze. Right. He needed to get her to a stable. 

He had been reluctant to leave her behind, so he whistled for his steed to cross the small distance between them. The horse galloped over without question but gave him a suspicious eye when it spotted Zelda a few feet away.

“Don’t worry, boy,” Link gave his horse a few reassuring strokes down his neck, “She’s a friend.”

His steed still seemed unconvinced, raising his snout and giving a quick snort before lowering it to nibble on some grass. The horse was stubborn, but it knew when to obey. If he was to carry a stranger, he would, albeit a little slower than he would be carrying someone he knew.

Link sighed and turned back to Zelda, who was still looking to the castle. He deliberated on what to call her to get her attention. Should he call her by her name? She certainly wouldn’t mind, but he felt as though he was breaking conduct by addressing her as anything but her title. He was still her personal knight, after all.

“Princess,” He had called, propping one foot onto the stirrup of the saddle, “If we start now, we can make it to the stable before it gets dark.”

She glanced over her shoulder briefly, as if his voice had caught her by surprise. She noted the horse at his side and nodded.

“Yes, of course, but…” She turned her gaze back to the castle, a silhouette against the setting sun, “Would it hurt if I got one last look? From the courtyard.”

He felt a muscle in his jaw harden. He didn’t know if the defeat of Ganon prevented stalkoblins from rising from the earth at night now, and he definitely didn’t want to have to fight them in front of the princess. His own thoughts backhanded him, however.

Selfish dolt. This is the first thing she’s had the freedom to do in over a century. Who are you to deny her? Because you don’t want to fight any skeletons?

“Take all the time you need,” He nodded. She looked back and gave him a grateful smile, before walking across the green stretches of Hyrule Field. Link sighed and took the reins of his steed, following along with her from behind.

The sky had turned a soft orange when they finally approached the outstretches of the courtyard. It was hard to believe that only hours ago, Link had stormed this very area, the Master Sword pulsing in his grip, guardians falling from the tirade of ancient arrows he unleashed upon them. Those same guardians now lay in ruin all around them, though he still didn’t trust their decrepit forms emptied of Ganon’s influence. He remembered his first guardian encounter, approaching it’s seemingly ruined remains only for it to spring to life when he got close. Zelda didn’t seem phased by the wreckage around her and didn’t spare the fallen machines so much as a glance. Link had a feeling, however, that if she did look to the guardians, it would be with sadness rather than fear. 

She broke into a light jog, startling Link for a moment, only to approach the crumbled fountain at the center of the courtyard. She kneeled and dipped her hand over the wall, only to pull up a palm filled with gravel and rock. She stared at her open hand for a moment, before releasing a single laugh and shaking the rocks off her hand.

“I suspected as much,” She had said, getting back to her feet again, “I should’ve captured an image of this fountain for you to remember it by. The water was cooler and sweeter than any waterfall in Faron. I sometimes favored it over the springs themselves.”

Link squinted at the large stone structure and tried to picture it in its glory days. White water bursting from the top and drizzling to the lower levels, children tossing in coins, the sun reflecting off its iridescent surface in the mornings. He smiled, though he didn’t notice, and Zelda felt a fleeting warmth in her heart at the sight. She couldn’t recall ever seeing him smile before the Calamity. Except when they attendant decadent banquets, of course. 

The sun caught in her eyes from ahead, shining through the gaping holes that now riddled her old home. She began her approach again, Link just barely stumbling to keep up behind her, torn from his fountain daydream. A lifetime ago, this castle had been her bane. She watched the land move and breathe without her, like a painting she wished to step into. Now, as she looked upon it’s ruined skeleton, she felt… sad. It had been the symbol of Hyrule, the heart of their nation, and now, it stood dead. 

But cleansed, she thought, the slate has been wiped clean. There’s time to start over. 

And cleansed it had been. Link joined her side as she looked up to the highest spire on the castle, taking in every last inch her eyes could hold. He remembered the red skies that hung like smoke over the castle, the malice that had compacted itself onto the stone walls and streets. All that had been washed away now, the covered roads now revealed to be pale and preserved compared to the worn stone around them. The sky had lightened from red to gold, giving way to the first sunset of a Ganon free Hyrule. He wondered how many citizens felt his presence leave this land. 

After what felt like another century gazing upon the towers, Zelda finally lowered her eyes back to Link and nodded. She was ready to leave this behind, at least for now. The two turned their backs on the castle. She was interested to see this stable that Link had referred to. She didn’t see every step of his journey and was partially grateful for that. There was an entirely new Hyrule to see with her own eyes, not within the confines of the castle. 

Both were only a few steps back into the courtyard when they inexplicably turned back to the castle. Link wasn’t so sure why he did this, as the castle was the last thing he wanted to see at the moment. Zelda, however, took it as one final look. She was sure she would see it again up close one day, but she wanted to go out and see Hyrule for herself. Neither of them noticed the faint blue wisps left behind as the spirits of the champions and the king dispersed. They would be all right on their own.

The sun was completely behind the castle now, sunbeams rising from behind like wings. Link felt a light tickle at his face and pinched at whatever bug had flown into him. To his surprise, what now was pinched between his fingers was not an insect, but a flower petal. White-tipped with blue. Silent Princess.

He let the petal drift to the cobblestone beneath them and looked up to see the flower petals now falling all around them. They danced on the gale blown in from Hyrule Field, dispersing all throughout the sky and spreading amongst the ground. Zelda cupped her palms and let the petals find their own way to her, gathering themselves in a delicate pile of white and blue. When enough had gathered, she threw them up into the air, adding to display. 

A few caught wind and danced away on the open air, but a select few drifted back down to her, catching in the golden strands of her hair. When she turned back to Link again, he nearly felt his breath leave him. She wasn’t as beautiful as people told him, that word didn’t do her any justice. She was stunning. 

You’re beautiful, he thought, as if she could hear his thoughts. Though, with her powers, he didn’t doubt that she could. And he didn’t mind. The words themselves almost left his lips, when he noticed her wobble again.

He had lowered her safely back to the ground again as soon as she lost her footing, supporting her with his arms.

“Princess, we need to get to the stable,” He tried to say gently, but he couldn’t disguise the emerging panic in his voice. But the princess wasn’t answering. In fact, she had gone completely limp in his arms, her head buried into his chest, “Princess? Zelda?”

She didn’t so much as stir. He bit down a swore and quickly stood, sweeping the princess up with him. He was a fool to think she wouldn’t even be able to stay awake after one hundred years fighting off Ganon. The adrenaline of escape must have kept her walking, and it seemed to have finally run out. He sprinted as fast as he could to where his steed waited outside of the courtyard.

“This is going to be a little uncomfortable, just deal with it,” He muttered to the horse as he hoisted Zelda up onto the saddle before hopping on himself. The horse gave a snort in protest, but stayed put, waiting for the signal to gallop. 

He slid behind where he sat Zelda, grabbing the reins with one arm and holding her tight with the other. She had survived one hundred years inside that beast. He prayed that she would survive a quick horseback ride across Hyrule Field. 

“Riverside stable. Run like Ganon was at your heels.” His horse was off with a quick kick of the heels, and they were at the stable by moonrise. 

The specifics escaped Link as he recounted what had gone on in his state of panic. He remembered throwing 40 rupees onto the counter for the softest bed they had, staying up all night at her side so she would be comforted if she ever woke up, paying a stable worker to prepare some baked apples for him so he didn’t have to leave his post. She awoke only one time in the morning, looking around the little of the stable that she could see before mouthing a thank you and drifting off again. 

Sometime around noon, they were on the horse again, this time en route to Hateno Village so he could properly care for her without spectators. He didn’t doubt that rumors of Princess Zelda’s return had started to spread after their dramatic entrance into the stable, so he had to get her to Hateno quickly before she was swamped with people. 

He noticed a significant decline in monsters at their regular posts but didn’t stick around long to investigate why. He didn’t want to be stuck fighting groups of lizalfos with an incapacitated princess to protect. The ride took nearly the rest of the day, and Link managed to get the two of them to his house. He had spent plenty of time here, so hopefully, Zelda recognized her surroundings when she came too again. 

In the present, there wasn’t much for Link to think about to keep himself awake. He had fallen asleep, after all, his head downturned and his arms tightened across his chest. The tea had been brewed a long time ago, but both Link and Zelda slept on through the morning. Apart, but together.


	2. II

The next time Zelda woke, it wasn’t due to the sun in her eyes. It was the sweet waft of sugary syrup that finally roused her, the quilt sliding off her body as she rose. The aroma seemed to lift her head off the pillow, her nose hooked on the scent. She took a refreshing breath, before finally exhaling, her eyes drifting open dreamily with a head full of fragrance. She wasn’t surrounded by glittering golden pixies as she had hoped, dumping perfume on her overhead. No, she was still in Link’s bed. That was all.

She started to lay back down when she suddenly shot up again. Link’s bed. The events of the past two days slammed into her all at once again, and it took a few moments of careful breathing to calm herself again. She is here. She is safe. Ganon is dead. Link is alive. The tension left as slowly as evaporation, Zelda brushing out her hair with her fingers to better get a grip again. It was going to take a long time to get used to waking up in a bed and not entrapped inside a beast. Savoring the feel of a mattress seemed like a good place to start.

She lowered her head back down to the feather stuffed pillow and craned her neck to get a glimpse of the clouds outside her window. One hundred years ago, she would’ve considered it silly to not take clouds for granted, but now she vowed to never neglect them ever again. As her fingers lightly traced their outlines from where she laid behind the window, she wished that she could feel them herself. She imagined that they would feel like the soft hide of her old white steed or the tender curls of her mother's hair. Her hand faltered for a moment at the thought of them. 

Right… she thought and brought her hand back to over her heart, They’re gone. It wouldn’t kill you to not think about them anymore, you know. Yes… all you have to do is not think about them. 

Her hand had long retreated under the safety of her quilt, but her eyes remained on the sky. She hadn’t noticed how many shapes that clouds could take. 

They almost look like flowers, she thought with a small smile, A blue field of flowers. They almost remind me of…

Her breath caught as she saw the vase of silent princess flowers sitting on the dresser by the window. There must have been a bundle of at least nine arranged neatly in a crystalline vase, the stems tied together with a white ribbon. She forgot any fatigue that plagued her and found herself crawling across the bed. Her fingertips gently grazed the tip of one of the flower’s petals, and for the first time in what must have been a century, she let herself laugh. She had never seen so many of the flowers in one place. If they were growing in such abundance that Link was able to create a bouquet of them...

She smiled and felt her face warm like fresh bread. Hyrule must be recovering by itself already. She reached to tuck a lock of stray hair behind her ear, and nearly jumped at the feel of fabric at her wrist. She stuck out her arm and realized that she had been wearing some oversized tunic all this time. She still felt her tattered dress underneath, though, and felt relieved yet disappointed that it hadn’t been removed. It proved he was a gentleman at heart, yet she couldn’t bear to stand a day longer in the cursed thing. 

“Princess,” Zelda looked up quickly at the voice to see Link now standing at the top of the stairs. Her heart dropped at his dark circles and mussed up hair, but yet another selfish part of her heart leaped at the plate of food in his hands: a golden crepe drizzled in honey and doused in cream. So that’s what the alluring scent had been. “Are you feeling better?”

She nodded and scooted so that her back was resting on the wall behind the head of the bed, “Much better. You’ll have to forgive me for my lack of strength. I wish I could’ve been more helpful on the trip back to… Hateno.”

“You needn’t apologize for anything,” Link shook his head and approached with the food. Her mouth salivated, “I made this just in case you need any extra energy. It always perked me up on the road.”

The plate was still warm when he laid it on her lap, and the crepes were almost as ambrosial under her nose as they had been downstairs. 

“Thank you,” Her voice nearly trembled as she picked up the fork he provided. It was stone, a far cry from the fine silver she used to use at the castle, but that hardly mattered to her, “I can’t express my gratitude enough.”

“You helped save Hyrule, I think that’s thanks enough,” She heard the smile on his voice, though her sight was completely enamored with the glazed treat. “Oh, I almost forgot. Wait here for a moment.”

She looked up just in time to see Link’s rattail disappear down the stairs. She clutched the fork with sudden panic, her heart beating fast under that tunic of his. 

A moment, he said. Why isn’t he back yet? Why did I hear the front door open? Is he leaving me? 

She found the crepes instantly unappetizing and nearly threw off the covers to go find Link again. He emerged at the top of the stairs just before she leaped from the bed, a twin-plate of honey crepes in one arm and a chair tucked under the other. 

“I couldn’t resist making one for myself,” He said, setting the chair next to Zelda’s bedside, “I think we both need some perking up.”

“Hah… yes,” Zelda hid her now slowing heartbeat with a forced chuckle, “You look absolutely exhausted.”

“I’m not as tired as it looks,” Link said, “Nights on the road prepare you for this sort of thing. Two days is nowhere near my record.”

She was tempted to ask what his record was but decided she was much too hungry to waste time with idle chat. She separated a bite of crepe with the side of her fork and swirled the slice in the layer of syrup on the plate, still keeping in mind the table manners she had been taught all those years ago. The crepe on her tongue was like a burst of new life, the unrelenting sweet taking hold of her senses and rocking her like a boat. It was then she realized that this was the first thing she had tasted in ages. When was the last time she had the luxury of food? She couldn’t recall. And she frankly didn’t care. Food was in front of her now, wasn’t it? 

“Wow…” She said with a full mouth, forgetting all manners. Not that Link minded. He was being just as uncouth, if not more so, honey dripping down his chin as he shoveled in the crepes. Her pace was only just behind, cutting and piercing the crepes in rapid succession until nothing remained. She danced her tongue around the fork’s grainy prongs to capture more honey and almost felt tempted to begin licking the plate itself. She decided that may just be a little too much, and finished the meal with a polite burp, covering her mouth daintily as if she hadn’t decimated her crepes barbarically seconds prior. Link, on the other hand, was dragging his tongue in erratic patterns all over his plate until not a drop of honey remained. The two let out a satisfied sigh and let their plates fall to their laps, still warm and comforting to the touch. 

“How could I forget your skill with a chef's spoon?” Zelda said, discreetly wiping the corners of her mouth with the tunic’s sleeve, “If it wasn’t Hyrule I was saving, why, I’d contain Ganon just to taste your food again!”

Link looked shocked that she would mention the Calamity in a joking manner already, but he quickly overwrote the reaction with laughter. 

“You flatter me, princess,” He said, “Would you be shocked to hear that I collected the courser bee honey myself?”

“Fearsome creatures,” She shook her head. She remembered her first encounter with them. It was her first day on survey, and she had guided her white steed through a patch of trees in Hyrule field to get a break from the harsh sunlight. One wrong step led to another, and that night she was back at the castle removing a dozen stingers from her hands. She smiled at the thought of Link waving them off without a glance before hauling their hives off to make dessert out of them. She looked around the room, now revitalized by the natural energizing properties of courser bee honey. 

She noted the bedside table, which had accumulated a few cold cups of tea, a dresser at the foot of the bed, and a few photographs scattered around the wall. Though her angle made it hard to see, a particular photograph on the same wall as the dresser caught her eye. A familiar blue, a familiar group of people…

“Let me get your plate for you,” Link said suddenly, nearly startling her. Ah, right. She had nearly forgotten about the plate. 

“Thank you,” She nodded, and he piled his plate on top of hers before placing the several teacups on top of the stash. She hadn’t noticed that she had started to lean forward a bit to get a better peek of the photograph. Now though, she couldn’t stand to even look back at what hung on the wall. She knew what hung there, and she remembered that day well. The uncloudy sky, posing for the photo, the feel of her friends all around her…

“May I ask you something?” She suddenly said, looking down to her hands pressed together in her lap. Link stopped what he was doing, setting down the stack of plates and teacups he had been attempting to balance.  
“What can I help you with?” He sat down with a face of concern on his soft features. She inexplicably felt herself start to tear up at the sight, and quickly whipped her head away to the window. Seeing any emotion at all from Link before the Calamity had been an event in of itself, but she had seen anything but ever since Ganon was vanquished. Him running to hug her, adjusting her quilt when he thought her to be asleep, cooking both of them breakfast. He was no longer that solemn soldier that had been assigned to her all those years ago. While his skills with weapons remained, he seems to have picked up a new arsenal. An ability to convey emotion.

“I… I have noticed your new abilities. Revali’s Gale, Mipha’s Grace…” She began, tracing unsure patterns into the quilt, “When you boarded the Divine Beasts, did you see them? Did you see the champions?”

Our friends?

This new Link certainly did not know how to hide his feelings as well as the other had. Link’s eyebrows immediately furrowed at the mention of them, and his fingers went to twiddling where they met resting on his knees. 

“I met their spirits,” He said finally, “The blights and malice seemed to have been keeping them contained on the Divine Beasts. Though they spoke to me before, I didn’t see them until I had freed the Beasts. And when we met, they gave me their aid.” 

He reached up a hand and touched the center of his sternum softly as if he could feel their gifts pulsing inside them. And he could, in a way, in his own heartbeat. Their gift to him was his life, and the opportunity to strike down Ganon for good. Though, in the days after the fight, he could feel their presence slowly leaving him, as if their ties to Hyrule were weakening. As if they trusted him to take the reins from here. 

I probably shouldn’t tell Zelda that, he thought. I don’t want to make her feel any more lonely. 

“When I left the beasts, their goodbye’s seemed their last,” Link said. “If we went back to the beasts…”

“They would be gone, yes, I understand…” Zelda finished for him. Her hands rose to rub some warmth into her suddenly chilled arms.“I figured as much.”

Link bit the inside of his mouth and desperately searched for a way to change the subject. His eyes went to her hands.

“Oh, are you cold?” Link asked. “I gave you the warmest tunic I had because I thought you might be chilly, though I’m not sure if you wanted me to remove your dress.”

“That’s very thoughtful, thank you,” Zelda tried to rouse herself from the sudden gloom that had overtaken her, but now it seemed that even the courser bee honey couldn’t help her. “Though, I think I’d rather burn this dress than spend a second longer in it.”

The comment brought a blush to Link’s face and a laugh to his lips. It was such a foreign sight to her that Zelda didn’t believe what she was seeing was real. She was still trapped within the Calamity, and he was playing mind games with her. 

“Let’s find you something more comfortable to wear then, shall we?” Link finished his laugh with a quick shake of the head and picked up the dishes again. “I’ll get these dishes washed and you can pick out something you like better.”

Link made his way back to the stairs, and Zelda found herself foolish for thinking he would leave her with a kiss on the head. He stopped just shy of the first step and turned back to her with a grin.

“And… if you were being serious about burning the dress, I have a campfire set up outside my house.”

She kept down a laugh and waved him off, not noticing her own blush on her cheeks. Once he was gone though, she couldn’t resist taking a peek at the portrait on the wall.

It was exactly what she was expecting. That image from all those years ago taken on the sheikah slate. Urbosa, Revali, Daruk, Mipha… and her… and Link. All alive. All happy. Unaware of the horror that awaited all of them in a few month’s time. She recoiled from the photo as if it had struck her and rested her back on the wall, hugging her knees. Her vision doubled, then tripled, and gave into a blur.

As Link washed the dishes downstairs with a pail and rag, Zelda wept to herself, too silent for even her to hear.


	3. III

If things went well, once Zelda got dressed, Link planned to take her outside to see the sun. He didn’t think that spending time in the Calamity warmed her up at all, so a fresh bask in the morning would be just what she needed. And maybe if she was up for it, he could take her to see Purah at the Ancient Tech Lab as a reminder that she still had friends around. Though, it seemed even that would take long strides. Just as he had finished washing the dishes, he heard a great thump from above. His hand flew to grab whatever weapon was closest, a soup ladle, and threw himself up the stairs. Whatever monster had found its way to Zelda, he would best it. When he got to the landing, however, all he saw was Zelda on the ground surrounded by a sea of quilts. 

“Princess, are you alright?” He asked, his grip on the ladle loosening a bit. 

Zelda spat a few strands of golden hair out of her mouth and put on her most casual smile. 

“Don’t fret, I’m fine.” She said, propping herself up with a locked arm and gripping the bedpost. “I just… well… I expected my legs to be a little stronger is all.”

Link heaved a great sigh and ran a hand through his mussed hair. He should’ve guessed that she would be weak after such a long time resting. Her falling out of bed was his fault. What if she had hurt herself? What if she missed the floor entirely and toppled off the landing? Zelda tried and failed to stand again, snapping Link back into action. He flung the ladle to the dresser and gathered the quilts from where they were smothering her. He was nearly winded just picking up a few and he suddenly felt very guilty for how weighed down she must have felt. 

Zelda, on the other hand, immediately felt a chill wash over her as the quilts were lifted. She rubbed her arms and suppressed a shiver, not wanting Link to be more worried than he already was. The final quilt was lifted, revealing that her old tattered dress had ridden up far past her knees. She leaned forward to pull the skirt back down to her ankles in a quick burst of panic and glanced up to Link. He didn’t seem to notice, however, as he thoughtfully folded the quilt back onto the bed. 

“Link?” She said. He looked down to where she sat on the floor with his usual, yet an unusual concern. Zelda had to stop herself from laughing at the thought of Link before the Calamity acting like this. 

“What is it?” 

“If it wouldn’t be much to ask, could I have a pair of trousers? I think I’ll explode if I spend a few more minutes in this dress.”

“Ah! Of course. I should have a few packed away here.” He stopped just shy of the dresser in a quick burst of realization. “Though… they may be a bit, eh, frayed, if that bothers you. I’m always on the trail and rarely have time to mend.”

“Anything will be better than this old thing.” Zelda felt a laugh bubble up, but it quickly died away as she tried and failed to get onto the bed again. Link didn’t fail to notice and quickly left his post at the dresser. 

“Here.” He held out a hand, and Zelda had no objections to grabbing ahold of it. His skin was callus, hardened under the grip of the master sword and countless other weapons. He pulled her up with no effort at all, leaving her sitting safely on his bed. She almost regretted letting go of his hand so soon, her palm now excruciatingly empty. Her hands promptly folded on her lap, attempting to fill the briefly occupied space. Link had long resumed rutting through his dresser drawers, but Zelda was unable to remove her gaze from her hands.

She stroked a thumb across the palm of her hand, almost frowning at how smooth it felt. Nothing in comparison to the war-hardened Link’s hand. He had spent all these months fighting for his life, hanging on the brink, all the while she was hidden away. Her hands and her heart softening under the pressure of time. 

Link blissfully whipped out his spare Hylian tunic, unaware of the crisis Zelda was currently having on his bed. 

“This should work.” He said as she startled, lifting her eyes from her hands. “I haven’t worn it too much after Impa gave me my old tunic, so this will be just fine.”

Zelda’s eyes lit up at the mention of Impa, all previous worries cast aside. “Impa? She’s alive?”

Link had to hold himself together to not melt at the sight of her smile. He strode to the bed and laid the pile of folded clothes in her lap, matching her unyielding beam. 

“Yes. And she’s not the only one.” He said. “It’s been so long, yet not so much as you think has changed.”

“That’s right…” She looked to the vase of silent princesses again, scrapping her memory. Yes, Impa was still alive. She could see her old friend’s aged smile in the golden flashes she saw of Link’s journey. Her unchanged laugh. She could almost remember Impa in her youth as well, though the details were far beyond a quick session of remembrance. The memories would come back to her in time. She would see her friend before her in due time. First, she needed to get this tunic on.

“Thank you, Link.” She finally came back to reality and nodded her gratitude.

“I’ll wait outside. Boots are by the door, and if you need help down the stairs, please give a shout.” Zelda’s smile was given prolonged life at how protective he was being. It reminded her much of her father before mother passed. Father… 

Her smile vanished yet again at the thought of her old man. She never did get to say goodbye, and she doubted his spirit lingered around this land any longer. What would he say, had he one last chance to speak to her? Would he be proud? Disappointed? Or would he refuse to speak at all?

She let out a quick breath in an attempt to expel the lump in her throat. She couldn’t linger anymore. What was done was done, right? Link had obviously moved on. It was time for her to as well. She took in a breath and unfolded the tunic on her lap, shoving the thoughts from existence. 

Link sat beside his cooking pot, running a finger around the brim to collect any excess courser bee honey. Despite the invigorating taste, his face held a glum expression. Something was troubling the princess. He could sense it at this very moment. Whether it be discouragement from being unable to walk or displeasure with his meal, nothing was right in the world unless Zelda was content. Recovery from such a traumatic experience would be long and grueling. He knew this. Yet, even so freshly free of the calamity, he couldn’t help but feel like a failure for being unable to make her completely happy. He could hear his inner voice scolding him already. 

Just give her time, it said. Time will heal Hyrule, and it will heal her as well. 

He pouted at his own thoughts, licking the last of the honey off his finger with a sharp pop. Time may be the best remedy, but he wished he could just take on all the burden of her feelings instead. 

A rainbow sparrow fluttered past, quickly diverting his attention. It hung briefly onto the breeze before settling itself on a nearby roof. The sun was now a quarter aways up the sky, silhouetting the bird. He closed his eyes, taking in every last beam of its gaze. The morning wind rustled his hair and cooled his heated face, calming him almost as effectively as water. Had it not been for the subtle majesty of Hyrule’s nature, he may have never made it to the end. He gripped the grass below with his fingers, soft and fresh beneath him. He released a breath. All was well. 

He may have sat there all morning had a few stray steps not roused him from his stupor. His knightly instincts kicked in for a few moments, eyes shooting open and muscles bracing for an attack, but all that stood there was Zelda. 

She stood rigid in the rays of the sun, the breeze gently rustling her boundless hair like an old friend. She reflected it’s light so well that she might as well be the sun. The only unlistening part of her laid from the neck down, the Hylian tunic robbing any ethereal quality she might have had. The trousers bunched at the lip of her boots while she rolled the tunic’s long sleeves all the way to her elbows. She bore the Hylian hood as well, secured around her neck, and gently flapping like a flag behind her. To a passerby, she might as well be just any other traveler making their way on the world. But Link couldn’t think any higher of her. 

He sat entranced by her for a few seconds before she turned to face him. Her face held a sad smile, eyes still sparkling with the full weight of the sun. 

“It isn’t too bad, is it?” She asked, hands clasped together over her front.

“Not at all, princess.” He answered, standing and brushing off his knees. “It’s just what you needed. If you wouldn’t be too opposed, I was hoping to take you for a walk around the village. Should you be fully up to it, of course.”

“I’d love nothing more.” She smiled, but the light no longer reached her eyes. Another shot to the gut. Link shook it off and approached, offering an arm.

“This may just be a tiny corner of Hyrule, but there’s much to see here.” He said. “And I’m sure the townspeople will love to meet you.”

Zelda slid her arm around Link’s leaning slightly on his body for support. “Just a walk would be nice for now, please.”

“Of course.” He bit his lip slightly, regretting even asking, but Zelda already seemed far past it. Her eyes were ahead, looking to the world beyond the bridge that led to his house. He held her arm a bit tighter just for safekeeping and led her across the crossing. He just hoped his neighbors took the hint to keep their good mornings to themselves today.


End file.
